The newly released documentary. full circle weaves the stories of sit-skier Trevor Kennison and veteran New Mobility editor Barry Corbet. Much of the film’s power comes from excerpts from Corbet’s 1980 book, Options: Spinal Cord Injury and the Future, a practical manual for thriving with SCI that is based on your own experiences and those of SCI survivors across the United States. With the release of the film, Corbet’s family has made Options Available for the first time in digital format.
“Barry Corbet passed away in 2004 and we still miss him dearly. Much has changed in the more than 40 years since Options it was written; Some things have improved, others have not. But the words in this book and the people portrayed in it are as relevant and important as they were in 1980,” his family writes.
The genesis of Options was the fact that Corbet’s post-SCI experience was largely devoid of other wheelchair users. Ten years after his accident, despite living a seemingly successful life, Corbet felt that “a part of me was still broken and was being firmly ignored.” So he set out to interview dozens of people with spinal cord injuries across the United States. The experience would be transformative. Corbet writes in the book’s preface:
“Once I embarked on this giant plagiarism, on this manipulation of other brains, I found myself acknowledging the experiences of others. The same things had happened to me, but they were stored somewhere beneath the surface of my normal memories. Bringing this set of experiences to light, to an area of availability and usefulness, has been enriching beyond measure for me. I want you to share this experience so that you don’t have to waste time in nature for years, like I did, to acquire it on your own. There is no need to reinvent the wheel, and why not take advantage of the opportunity when it is offered to you?”
Yes, why not? Can discharge Options free in pdf or epub versions or read it in your web browser. The digital versions of Options are housed in Barrycorbet.comwhere you can find various other information about Corbet, including photographs, memorabilia, and a film that Corbet directed.
